#before remembering that I don't think that existed in whatever edition was out in the 70s/80s

[dire-kumori]

If the Afton kids played DnD, what characters would they make?

[lisalamona]

(og) Lay All Your Love On Me

. Pairing: rockstar! Poseidon x gn! Reader . Summary: You're a photographer for the band Natural Disaster. There's been tension between you and Poseidon for months. Zeus thinks you two should just fuck. (I don't have enough brain power to make a proper summary, I'll edit it when I get the cnahce) . Warnings: I would say this oneshot is 16+. It gets kinda spicy towards the end. There's mentions of sex and swear words. . Notes: The voices... They told me to write this I feel like I could've done better with this but, you know what's done it's done, I know that If I don't put it out now I'll never be actually content with it poseidon divider made by @vibeswithrenai and taken from this post

series masterlist rewritten version (coming soon)

Lights pulsed in a chaotic symphony, a swirl of blues, greens, and yellows swallowing the entire arena. The energy in the air was electric, thick with anticipation, the kind that pressed against your skin like an oncoming storm. If the massive speakers weren't rattling your bones, the roar of the crowd more than made up for it—a deafening wall of sound that left no doubt about the spectacle unfolding before them.

People had traveled from all over just for the chance to witness this moment, to see Natural Disaster live in the flesh. Thousands packed together, a sea of bodies moving as one, their cheers blending into the pounding bass that vibrated through the floor, creeping up your legs and settling deep in your chest. Some fans screamed the lyrics at the top of their lungs, others clutched onto each other, overwhelmed by the sheer energy of the night. The whole place felt alive, buzzing with an almost tangible force.

Even after nearly a year of touring with the band, you were still struck by the sheer magnitude of their audience—passionate, relentless, utterly devoted. You almost regretted not knowing about them before; it felt like a missed opportunity. But at the same time, maybe that ignorance had been a blessing in disguise. It had brought you here, given you this chance—an opportunity most fans could only dream of.

As the song swelled toward its chorus, you found yourself mouthing the words, the melodies, the slight inflections of the singer's voice etched into your mind like second nature. It had become instinct, like breathing. More than once, you'd caught yourself humming their songs during your downtime, the tunes slipping from your lips before you even realized it. Who knew how many other times it had happened unnoticed?

Your attention snapped back to reality, and you quickly readjusted the lens of your camera, bringing it to your eye once more. The three figures on stage seemed like they were having the time of their lives—energy radiating from them in waves. Or maybe that was just the way the bright stage lights mixed with the sweat glistening on their skin, making them appear almost otherworldly. The music pulsed through the air, vibrating in your chest, while the crowd around you swayed, screamed, and reached toward the performers as if they were divine beings descending from Olympus itself.

One of the three, the vocalist, turned his head in your direction, and the moment his gaze swept over the crowd, the volume of the screaming behind you somehow surged even higher. You silently thanked your past self for remembering earplugs.

Still, despite the chaos, his eyes found yours—and stayed there.

For a second, the world shrank, the lights dimmed, the crowd melted away. He was stunning, almost ethereal, as if the entire setup of the concert existed solely to highlight him. The glow of the lights framed his features in a halo of brilliance, while the deep, inky black of his hair shimmered faintly with a bluish outline, reflecting the colors behind him. His eyes—what little you could see of them through the moving lights—held something you couldn't quite place, but whatever it was, you knew it was something good. Something electric.

Your lips stopped moving. Lyrics left right on the tip of your tongue unsaid. He had you in a trance.

Then, as if sensing the spell he'd cast, he smirked.

The moment shattered, and your instincts kicked in. Without hesitation, you snapped a photo. Candid shots were always great, but this? A direct look, caught in time—that was something different. That was raw. That was real. It communicated things you couldn't quite explain.

Lowering your camera just slightly, you peeked over it—and there he was, still smirking, still looking directly at you. And worst of all, you knew, without a doubt, that smirk was meant for you.

You rolled your eyes, playful but unimpressed. His smirk widened, eyes glinting with amusement before he finally turned away, shifting his gaze to some unseen point in the middle of the audience, continuing with the performance.

You exhaled, glancing down at the screen to review the shot you had just captured.

Perfect.

The crowd behind you erupted again, their voices blending into one thunderous chant—one name over and over, rising like a prayer to the heavens.

"POSEIDON! POSEIDON! POSEIDON!"

The stage lights flickered in response, casting the entire scene in a fleeting, shimmering blue, like moonlight on crashing waves. And for a brief moment, you wondered if this man was just a performer—or something far more.

──────📸──────

"I think tonight went great."

The four of you made your way out of the arena through a dimly lit back alley, slipping through the heavy metal door that slammed shut behind you with a dull thud. It wasn't the most glamorous exit, but you had to stay humble somehow, right? In all seriousness, it was one of the safest ways to leave venues like this—without the risk of being swallowed by a screaming crowd.

Still, you had a feeling you could have walked right through the front doors if you wanted to. Considering how late it was and how long ago the concert had ended, the majority of fans had already cleared out. It was Zeus' fault, really. If anyone ever arrived late or left late, he was somehow always to blame. In this case, though, you silently thanked him for it.

"Yeah, we got to end it with a bang!"

You had been told you'd need to wait a few hours before getting back on the tour bus—the crew still had things to pack and prep before hitting the road again. You weren't too thrilled about the downtime, but it wasn't like you had a choice.

"What did you think, [Name]?"

Three heads turned toward you in perfect synchronization, their eyes gleaming with anticipation. They always asked, and you always gave the same answer. So this time, you decided to switch it up.

"Eh, it was fine."

You waved a dismissive hand, fighting to keep a straight face as the three of them froze in place.

"...Fine. Fine?"

Zeus, the blonde, looked as if you had just personally insulted his entire bloodline. His mouth hung open slightly, his brows furrowing before he lurched forward and clamped a hand against your forehead.

"Are you okay?" He demanded, eyes narrowing in suspicion.

You laughed, batting his hand away. "Yes."

"You never say it's fine. You're always all like—" Zeus suddenly slung an arm over your shoulders, lifting his hand like a talking puppet, bringing his voice higher in what you assumed was a terrible impression of you. "'Oh, well, I think it was splendid! Absolutely brilliant! Poseidon is divine! A true gift to the stage!'"

You barely heard the last part, too caught up in the sheer audacity of how he made you sound—like a tiny English orphan boy from some old timey novel.

"I don't sound like that!"

You turned to the other two for support, but Hades merely shrugged, and Poseidon... Well, he smirked, looking far too entertained.

Over the past year or so, you'd grown close to them—not just as colleagues, but as friends. Real friends. The kind that could spend hours together on the road without wanting to kill each other (well, most of the time). You had late-night conversations about nothing and everything, inside jokes that made no sense to anyone else, and a ridiculous amount of shared memories in different cities across the country. They had become your people. And, judging by the way they always included you in everything, you knew they felt the same.

Poseidon was the next to step beside you, his presence effortlessly replacing Zeus as he shoved the blonde's arm off your shoulders and draped his own there instead. Zeus scoffed, rolling his eyes as he gestured toward you and Poseidon, looking to Hades for support, but Hades merely shrugged again.

You stiffened slightly at the unexpected touch, but when Poseidon looked at you, the tension faded. His scent—something faintly salty, like the sea after a storm—washed over you, strangely familiar and oddly comforting. It was strange, really. You hadn't ever seen him anywhere near a large body of water, except for the few times the band stopped in coastal cities for a break. And yet, he always smelled like the ocean.

"Well," Poseidon drawled, giving your shoulder a light squeeze. "I think it's a good thing. Helps us improve, doesn't it, angel?"

His gaze lingered just a second too long. Neither of you looked away.

For a fleeting moment, the rest of the world faded.

Then—

"I heard of this one bar from a friend," Hades interrupted, breaking the spell as he glanced up from his phone. "We could go there while we wait. He said it isn't usually busy."

Poseidon turned to him, giving his brother a thumbs up. "Sounds good."

Just as you began heading in the direction of the bar, a small group of lingering fans spotted the band and rushed over. They weren't overwhelming—just a handful of excited people eager for a quick interaction.

"Could we get a picture?" One of them asked breathlessly, eyes darting between them in awe.

Poseidon shifted away, dropping his arm from your shoulders.

You instantly missed the warmth. The weight of it.

Still, you smiled, already holding out your hand for their phones. It wasn't the first time, and it wouldn't be the last. You didn't mind taking pictures—it was part of the job, unofficially.

But then, one of the girls stepped forward, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear as she looked at Poseidon with a giddy, almost shy expression.

"Can I get one with just you?"

Poseidon, ever the charmer, gave her an easy, lopsided grin. "Of course."

You raised the phone, framing the shot, but something about it made your stomach twist.

The way her hand lightly grazed his arm. The way he leaned in just a little closer for the picture. The way she bit her lip slightly before giggling.

Nothing inappropriate. Just too familiar.

You quickly snapped the picture and handed the phone back, forcing a neutral expression.

It wasn't a big deal. It shouldn't have been a big deal.

And yet.

Poseidon caught your eye as you handed the last phone back, something flickering in his expression. Maybe amusement. Maybe something else.

You watched as the small group of fans disappeared into the night, their excited chatter fading into the hum of the city. Zeus and Hades, meanwhile, had gone back to squinting at a map on Hades' phone, quietly bickering over which turn to take next, determined not to get lost.

"Jealous?"

Poseidon's voice was sudden, low, and far too close, making your heart jump just slightly. You recovered quickly, schooling your expression into a smirk as you glanced up at him.

"Not at all. Just tired." You stretched your arms lazily before dropping them back to your sides. "How far did you say the bar was?"

"Three blocks over... there!"

Hades finally lifted his gaze from his phone and pointed in the direction of a warmly lit bar sign down the street before taking the lead, Zeus following close behind.

Poseidon, however, didn't budge.

His sea colored eyes stayed fixed on you, expression unconvinced. He saw right through your excuse—probably already had some remark lined up about how your face definitely told a different story.

But before he could get the words out, you moved.

In one quick motion, you grabbed him by a belt loop and gave a firm tug, pulling him closer. The unexpected action made him stumble slightly, his face shifting in surprise—then, just for a moment, his ears burned red, his breath hitched, and his heart skipped a beat.

You didn't give him the chance to recover. With an innocent smile, you simply turned, still holding onto his belt loop, and started pulling him along toward his brothers.

That seemed to shut him up.

For now.

──────📸──────

By the time you finally made it to the bar, the four of you had settled into a secluded booth toward the back. It was a snug fit but comfortable, the kind of space that made it easy to sink into conversation without interruption. The atmosphere was calm—almost homely—an intimate contrast to the chaotic, electric energy of the arena.

The warm glow of dim lights reflected off polished wooden surfaces, casting soft shadows across the walls. A low hum of voices drifted around the room, but no one was loud or disruptive—just small groups of friends talking in hushed tones, likely regulars who had carved out this space as their own. The only other sound was the faint murmur of a football game playing on a small TV mounted in one corner, though judging by the lack of interest from anyone in the bar, it was probably a rerun.

You sat with your arms stretched out toward the center of the table, your camera resting in your hands, its screen illuminating the dim space as you scrolled through the night's captures. The three of them leaned in, watching as you flicked through the images.

Comments were thrown around—some admiring the shots, others laughing at the more unflattering ones. Zeus, of course, was the loudest, making sure to poke fun at Hades' stone faced expressions and his own occasional ridiculous poses. But as the slideshow continued, one comment, in particular, caught you off guard.

"Why are most of these Poseidon?"

Your fingers froze mid scroll.

Zeus had a raised brow and an infuriatingly smug smirk, leaning forward with one arm propped on the table, hand supporting his chin. Before you could even process how to respond, his expression flickered—just for a second—as if he had been struck with sudden pain. Someone had clearly kicked him under the table.

You weren't sure who.

"I just want to know!" Zeus protested, rubbing his leg and throwing an accusing glance around the table.

Your face heated up, your mind scrambling for an excuse.

"He's the main vocalist," You stated matte of factly, shifting in your seat. "If you have a problem, take it up with the people. It's what they want to see."

Zeus' smirk only widened.

"Are you the people?" Before you could formulate a response, another thud sounded beneath the table—this time louder, sharper. Zeus flinched, hissing in pain as he immediately bent down to rub his leg. "Stop that!"

You fought back a grin, quickly glancing at Poseidon, whose face remained neutral—too neutral.

But the glint in his eyes?

Yeah.

You had a pretty good idea who was responsible for the second kick.

Still, you quickly drowned what was left in your glass and stood up. You needed a second to breathe—to shake off the lingering embarrassment sitting heavy in your chest. It wasn't anything serious, nothing you couldn't handle, but still, your skin felt a little too warm, your pulse just a little too quick. A short walk to the bar and back would be enough to compose yourself.

"I'm going to get a refill. Anyone want anything?"

A chorus of no's and I'm fine's met your ears, so you simply nodded and made your way to the counter.

As you waited to be served, another patron leaned against the bar beside you—a guy, about your age, casually dressed, clearly waiting for his drink too. It wasn't long before you exchanged a few words, just friendly conversation, nothing out of the ordinary. But across the room, someone else seemed to think otherwise.

Poseidon sat stiffly in the booth, his drink untouched, his jaw just slightly clenched. His deep blue eyes locked onto the guy at the bar like a predator watching potential prey. It was almost laughable how intense his stare was—if looks could kill, that man would've dropped right then and there.

Zeus noticed. With a slow, knowing smirk, he leaned toward Poseidon, voice dripping with amusement. "You keep glaring like that, and he might actually drop dead."

Poseidon exhaled sharply, tearing his gaze away and taking a slow sip of his drink, trying to appear indifferent. It wasn't working. "I'm not glaring."

"Oh, shut up." Zeus leaned forward, lowering his voice just enough to keep it between them. "You've been pining for months. Months. Even Hades can't take it anymore."

As if on cue, Hades, who had remained mostly quiet, reached across the table and grabbed the camera still sitting open in the center. His sharp eyes flicked to the screen—a clear shot of Poseidon, captured in perfect lighting, an almost ethereal glow around him. He turned the screen toward his younger brother.

"It's a sign." Hades stated simply.

Poseidon frowned. "A sign?"

"They like you too. And if you need more proof, let's talk about the unbearable tension between you two." He sat back, crossing his arms. "Honestly, it's getting exhausting to watch."

"And those stupid braids! You let them braid your hair like some kindergartener every night!" Zeus threw his hands in the air, exasperated.

Poseidon instinctively glanced down at the braids you had done for him earlier that night. They weren't anything elaborate—just a few loose ones scattered through his hair, with two framing his face. You'd woven small trinkets into them, mostly ocean themed charms—tiny seashells, beads shaped like starfish, a silver wave. He had reminded you of his domain, and you had made it very clear in your choices. And he wore them with pride, he wasn't about to let his brother take it away.

He absentmindedly reached up, running his fingers over one of the charms before looking back at his younger brother, expression almost offended. "They're not stupid. I like them."

Zeus snorted. "You look like a hippie."

Poseidon arched a brow. "Did you look at yourself in the mirror before stepping out?"

Before Zeus could fire back, Hades sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Alright, enough." He muttered, effectively cutting through their bickering. His gaze shifted to Poseidon. "They won't be there forever for you to tell them and you know that. It's clear that you want to. Stop being the Poseidon that puts everyone at an arm's length and just do it."

Poseidon rolled his eyes, but the lightest hint of pink dusted his cheeks. He brought his drink back to his lips.

Zeus, of course, had to make it worse.

"Or, in better words—just fuck already."

Poseidon nearly choked on his drink.

"Shut up." His voice came out more flustered than threatening, especially with the way he quickly glanced around to see if you had heard that. His blush deepened when Zeus waggled his brows at him.

"I'm just saying—" Zeus continued, clearly enjoying this way too much. "You need to quit staring like some lovesick fool and do something about it."

Then, suddenly, his focus shifted. A girl had just walked into the bar—a striking one, by the way Zeus' gaze immediately locked onto her.

"For example..." He tapped the table once before standing up. "Watch and learn, brother. You'll get to experience it firsthand."

And just like that, he was gone, striding toward the girl with all the confidence of a man who had never once been rejected, not that it was true.

Poseidon exhaled, running a hand through his hair.

Hades turned the camera toward him again, this time slowly pushing it to him, expression unreadable.

"You know he's right."

Poseidon groaned, rubbing a hand down his face.

"Great. Just what I needed—you agreeing with him."

Poseidon huffed, leaning back against the booth with his arms crossed.

Hades, ever composed, simply shrugged. "I'm not saying you should rush into things and have sex straight away." His tone was dry, amused. "But you do need to tell them. It's going to eat you alive if you don't." He met Poseidon's gaze evenly. "You'll know the right moment. And if you don't take it when it comes, you're going to regret it."

Before Poseidon could argue, Hades' phone buzzed against the wooden table, cutting through the conversation. The screen lit up, and Poseidon caught a glimpse of the contact photo—his sister in law's familiar face.

Persephone.

It was almost a ritual at this point. Every night after a show, without fail, she called to check in. Maybe to ask how things had gone, maybe just to hear Hades' voice. Either way, Poseidon had lost count of how many times this exact moment had played out.

Hades barely glanced at the screen before reaching for the phone, a rare, almost imperceptible softness passing over his usually sharp features.

"It worked for me." He murmured before standing up and making his way toward the exit. The door swung shut behind him, the cold night air swallowing his voice as he answered the call.

Poseidon glanced around the nearly empty table, a quiet exhale slipping past his lips. It was as if the universe was mocking him—one by one, everyone had slipped away, leaving him the last one standing. Hades had stepped outside, deep in conversation with Persephone. Zeus had all but disappeared, wrapped up in a flirtatious exchange with the woman who had just walked in. And then there was you.

His eyes found you at the bar, where you exchanged a friendly wave with the man you'd been talking to as he returned to his table. You didn't seem particularly invested in the conversation—just polite, casual—but it still made something coil uncomfortably in Poseidon's stomach.

Before he could think too much about it, his hand instinctively reached for your camera, making sure no one else would take it in your absence. Then he pushed himself up from the booth and walked straight toward you, not hesitating for a second.

"What are you having?"

His voice was low, close—closer than you expected. Before you could react, one of his arms slipped around your waist, the sudden contact making you jump slightly. His touch was cool, his fingers settling almost too naturally on your hip, as if they had always belonged there.

It wasn't just a fleeting touch, either. His thumb moved in slow, absentminded circles over the fabric of your clothes, sending an unexpected shiver up your spine. Your mind short circuited for a moment.

You swallowed hard, forcing yourself to focus. "Just some water."

Poseidon raised a brow. "Nothing else?"

"Yeah, not in the mood to let you guys drink me under the table again." You finally turned to meet his gaze, expression playfully accusing. "I've learned my lesson."

"It was one time!"

"It was embarrassing."

"It was adorable."

The bartender slid your glass of water toward you, and you took a sip, letting the cool liquid settle your nerves. Glancing back toward the booth, you realized how empty it looked.

"Where are the rest? Are we leaving?"

Poseidon followed your gaze before checking the clock on the TV screen. "We probably should." He took out his wallet and paid the bartender what was owed.

You downed the rest of your drink, letting him guide you toward the entrance.

As you passed Zeus, still deeply engrossed in conversation with the stunning woman from earlier, Poseidon didn't even slow his pace.

"He's married."

The words were spoken so casually, as if it was just an offhand remark. But they landed like a thunderclap. The woman stiffened, her expression shifting in an instant. Without another word, she stood up and left.

Zeus groaned dramatically. "Oh, come on!"

Poseidon, still not sparing him a glance, only smirked.

──────📸──────

The bus was quiet, save for the soft hum of the engine as it rolled down the darkened highway. Most of the others had already settled in for the night. Hades, ever the responsible one, had turned in first, slipping into his bunk with a final check of his phone before muttering a goodnight. Zeus, on the other hand, had collapsed onto his bed with all the grace of a fallen tree, his snores already filling the small space.

Poseidon, however, was still awake—still thinking.

Zeus and Hades' words from earlier refused to leave his head, circling like vultures. You need to tell them. It's going to eat you from the inside out. He scoffed softly to himself. Like it was that easy.

And now, with the bus lights dimmed and the world outside nothing but a blur of passing headlights, he found himself glancing toward your bunk, where the soft glow of your laptop screen illuminated your face.

You were sitting cross legged, laptop propped on your thighs as you transferred the night's photos from your camera. Your bunk was the top one—you had fought tooth and nail to get it, determined not to settle for anything less. What you didn't know was that Poseidon had let you have it, even if he'd never admit it.

As you carefully checked the last of the transfers, Poseidon walked by, already dressed for bed—pajama pants hanging low on his hips, a tank top clinging to his frame in a way that made it impossible not to look. When his eyes landed on you, there was no surprise. Of course you were still awake.

"You still up?"

You hummed in response, not looking away from the screen, even though you really wanted to. "Making sure I don't lose any pictures."

He lingered for a moment, then, with a casual air masking something deeper, asked, "Can I see them again?"

You turned to him, surprised by his genuine interest. "Of course."

With effortless strength, Poseidon grabbed the edge of your bunk and hoisted himself up, careful not to bump his head in the cramped space. You adjusted your laptop, angling the screen toward him as he settled beside you, shoulders almost touching.

The two of you scrolled through the images, laughter slipping between you as you pointed out ridiculous expressions and perfectly timed shots.

"You actually managed to look right at the lens," You mused, clicking through the images. "Which is wild because with all those lights, I'd imagine it'd be hard to spot it."

Poseidon tilted his head slightly, his gaze flicking from the screen to you. "It's hard not to look at you."

You froze.

He had leaned in to say it—so close, his breath brushed your ear, his voice deep and low. Your entire body tensed at the unexpected sensation. The space between you felt suddenly nonexistent. He was always cool to the touch, like the ocean breeze on a late night, but now—now he was warm. Too warm. His presence was overwhelming in the best way, his body radiating heat like a fire in the dead of winter.

Your hands stilled over the laptop. The moment stretched. You turned your head, searching his eyes, desperate to know if this was just more of the playful flirting he always threw your way, or if—

His gaze flickered downward. To your lips.

The air between you thickened, charged, pulling you forward before you could think better of it. His lips met yours—soft, warm, lingering in a way that felt certain. No hesitation. No teasing. Just him.

You supposed that was your answer.

Poseidon tilted his head slightly, deepening the kiss, his hand drifting to the back of your neck, fingers threading through your hair as he pulled you closer. You melted into it. He tasted faintly of mint and something sweet, something him. When you finally broke apart, breathless, he hovered just inches away, his thumb tracing absentminded circles against your skin.

Out of nowhere you had the courage to speak. "You put on this rough, brooding persona." You murmured, lips brushing against his. "But I know you."

Poseidon exhaled a soft chuckle, raising a brow. "Really?"

"Really."

A slow smirk pulled at his lips. "What do you know?"

You exhaled, your fingers curling into the fabric of his tank top. "...You want..."

Poseidon's voice dropped an octave. "What do I want?" His nose brushed yours, the tension crackling between you like a brewing storm. "Show me."

The next kiss was different—hungrier. His hands found your waist, pulling you flush against him as his mouth moved over yours, stealing every breath you had to offer. Your laptop was an afterthought as Poseidon reached past you, flipping it shut before taking your camera and carefully lowering it to his bunk below.

Or at least, that was the plan.

Thud.

He hit his head on the low ceiling ledge, where the curtain rails ran.

You broke into laughter. "Oh, you're laughing?" He muttered, rubbing the sore spot, his expression both irritated and amused.

"A little bit." You teased.

Poseidon narrowed his eyes, tilting his head. "Oh, I'll shut you up."

With that, he lowered you back onto the mattress, one hand gripping your thigh, kneading the muscle as he brought it up, pulling you against him. His fingers trailed upward, firm yet teasing, sending sparks down your spine. He tilted your head to the side, lips grazing your jaw, then lower, lower—his mouth settling at the delicate space between your jaw and neck.

When he pressed his lips there, you let out a soft whimper, barely aware you had done it. The warmth of his mouth against your skin, the way his breath fanned over the sensitive spot—it was dizzying.

He smirked against your neck. He barely had time to make a comment before—

"Hey!"

Zeus' voice shattered the moment. "If you're gonna have sex, do it at the next stop OUTSIDE the bus. I don't wanna hear you two going at it!"

Heat flooded your face. You let your forehead fall against Poseidon's shoulder, laughing softly in embarrassment.

Poseidon groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "Shut up, Zeus."

Zeus snickered. "You're welcome." It was revenge for what he had done before.

Poseidon muttered something under his breath, but as you glanced up at him—his face slightly pink, his lips kiss swollen—you just smiled.

You gave him one last chaste kiss on the mouth, slow and lingering, a quiet promise that this wasn't the end of whatever had just begun. Your fingers brushed over his arm in a gentle pat, grounding both of you back to reality.

"We should go to sleep." You murmured, your voice softer now, reluctant but firm.

His eyes, still hazy with emotion, softened at the sight of you. There was something unspoken in his gaze, something that made your heart clench just a little. But he didn't argue. He simply exhaled, slow and steady, before finally loosening his hold on you.

His fingers grazed your waist one last time as he pulled away, as if reluctant to break the connection.

"Yeah," He finally said, voice quieter now. "we should."

With one last glance, he eased himself down from your bunk, settling into his own below you. The space between you suddenly felt colder, emptier—but the warmth he left behind lingered on your skin. You couldn't help the smile that had formed on your face from ear to ear, you had to stop yourself from squealing, though.

And with that, the bus rolled on, carrying you both into the quiet of the night.

[gingerteafairy]

𝙣𝙤𝙣 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙩𝙥 (𝙧𝙤𝙙𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙠 𝙝𝙚𝙛𝙛𝙡𝙚𝙮 𝙭 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧)

Rodrick tries to get your attention, even if he had to cosplay of your non canon otp.

tags n warnings: fluff, nerdy!reader, death note references, cosplay, suggestive, perv!rodrick, shy!reader. word count: 1.5k

Rodrick Heffley sort of hated you. 

Okay, not really. It wasn’t that Rodrick hated you—you weren’t fake or mean, or some weirdo who would make him cringe. You were just... well, weird. He’d totally clocked that you had a crush on him after, like, a minute. It was obvious.

The blushes when he walked by, the borderline embarrassing comments on his Instagram—it was like a neon sign. But you were cute. Annoyingly cute. With your big sunshine smiles, dorky jokes, and all that awkward eye contact whenever you bumped into each other at school. 

He gave you hell about being “weird.” But he liked it. Actually, loved it. This perv already pictured you in dozens of sexual scenarios with imaginary reactions he’d love to see. Like, would you be all shy when he took off his clothes or would you laugh if you got into some creative position? Would your glasses be foggy? He really wanted to see you with nothing but your glasses on.

You were just a girl giggling at his Instagram posts. His story, of course, featured him slumped on a museum bench, arms crossed, staring at some abstract painting like it had personally offended him. The caption? “Modern art is dead. Let me out.”

You knew better than to expect a sweet reply. It was either ghosting or snarky comebacks. Spoiler alert—you got the snarky reply.

But seeing him in person? Still the worst thing ever.

Which is exactly why you froze when you spotted him one afternoon, sitting lazily on the steps of his front porch. He looked perfectly disheveled in his black metal band shirt, one leg stretched out, his back leaned casually against the doorframe. Like a damn indie rock album cover.

Your brain screamed nope, but your feet had already carried you halfway past his house before—

"Hey, dorky.”

Rodrick’s voice broke through your panic like a needle to a balloon. You skidded to a halt, eyes wide. Slowly, you turned, clutching the strap of your bag for dear life.

“Hey…” you squeaked, adjusting your glasses.

Rodrick smirked, pushing off the steps. “You think I’m a ghost or something? You walk past here like I don’t exist.”

Your cheeks burned. “I—uh—I didn’t see you.”

“Totally believable.” Rodrick’s smirk grew. “You said you bought a Misa costume, remember? Wig and everything. And also the whole limited edition of the dolls and stuff.”

You blinked, horrified and excited at the same time.“I—I didn’t think you’d remember that.”

“Why wouldn’t I?” He tilted his head, hands shoved in his pockets.

“I don't know…”

“Relax. It’s kinda sick, actually.” His gaze flicked over you like he was sizing you up. “You’d look good as Misa.”

“Really?” you jumped, clapping your hands. “I'll dress up like her everyday and I already bought her necklace.”

“You’re so awkward,” he teased, voice softer. “C’mon. What’s the rush? You’re always running past here like I’m gonna bite. Unless…”

You stared at him, unsure if your heart was about to stop or explode. “Unless…?”

“Unless you would like to get bitten by me.”

Your face turned scarlet. “Why…Why do you…?”

Rodrick rolled his eyes, turning back toward the house. “You’re impossible. I was gonna invite you in, but whatever. Get home safe.”

And with that, he disappeared inside, leaving you standing in the street, cheeks flushed, completely stunned. He just landed on the floor, stomping his head on the wall.

“Shit. I wanna see her in that outfit.” He cried out with his cheeks beet-red.

“She's so cool. Did you know she draws like a pro?" Greg cheered, watching you make your steps to your home, still confused.

“yourusername? She gave me pokemon cards for free in her parents store when I told my mother that I loved pokemon! A limited one. Pew peww.” Rowley exclaimed happily, stepping back when Rodrick stood up with a murderous look. “Uh-oh.”

Then he remembered, stopping him from the possible child murder. Only himself knew the cutie clumsy patootie you were, which made him giggle to the ground, curling his hands on the hem of his shirt.

“Ewww.” Greg hissed, frowning.

“I think your brother likes her.” Rowley smiled, walking to Greg's room, who was totally disgusted by the sight of his brother lifting his toe like a little girl.

The next week, someone invited Rodrick to a costume party. Sure, the music was decent, and someone brought a vintage vinyl player, which kept him from leaving immediately. The worst part is that you didn't come. “Socialization fear, Rod. Not my thing”. By midnight, he was leaning against a wall, phone in hand. Grinning when he saw you post you in your Misa outfit.

yourusername: “Dressing as my queen >o<.”

He wasn’t even sure why he posted a photo of himself dressed as L from Death Note. Maybe out of boredom. Maybe because he hoped you’d see it.

rodrickrockslodediper: justice will prevail.

Cheesy as hell. But effectively, you have seen it in a minute.

“God, you look so perfect.”

The message was simple—too simple for you. No silly emojis, no teasing lines. For some reason, that made him pause. And then, before he could talk himself out of it, he did something impulsive: he called you.

The line clicked after just two rings. “What the—Rodrick?”

He smirked at the sound of your flustered voice. “Didn’t think you’d answer so fast.”

“You called me,” you sputtered, nearly knocking over everything on your desk, your glasses almost broke on the floor. “What’s going on?”

“Party’s boring.” His voice was low and smooth, a little breathless. “Some kid thought I was Steve Jobs.”

You burst out laughing. “Oh my god. That’s so tragic.”

“Yeah, laugh it up, Misa Misa.” He hesitated, voice softening just slightly. “I wish you were here.”

Click.

And just like that, his status went offline before you even had time to reply. He stuffed his phone into his pocket, walking away from the party like he’d just dropped a bomb, not even bothering to say goodbye to anyone.

"What the heck was that?!" you exclaimed, staring at your phone like it had grown a second head. Rodrick Heffley called to say he wanted you to be with him? That couldn’t be real.

And yet, the disbelief hit even harder when your doorbell rang. You opened the door, and there he was—smudged eyeliner and messy dark shadow to fake L’s signature tired look. Meanwhile, you were fully dressed as Misa Amane. What even was this situation?

"Good thing I made it before you ditched the cosplay," he said with a lopsided grin, still catching his breath. He had run to your house. Rodrick Heffley, running. For you.

You stood frozen, like a deer caught in headlights. Say something! Come on, say something! your brain screamed.

"Uh… Let’s... let’s go inside, Lawliet. I, uh… I have candy!" you stammered in a sweet tone, fumbling over the words. Your cheeks burned with embarrassment.

Rodrick burst out laughing, loud and unfiltered, before slapping a hand over his mouth, trying to keep it cool. But the faint pink tint on his face gave him away. He couldn’t believe how adorable you looked, trying so hard to pull off Misa.

"What’s so funny?" you mumbled, shifting your weight awkwardly, your face heating up even more.

"Nothing..." he snorted, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye as his laughter died down. "Can I come in?"

"I… My parents… They’re, uh, kinda strict about guys being here," you muttered, cringing at how childish you sounded. Why did your parents have to be like this now of all times?

Rodrick clicked his tongue and shrugged. "Oh...Okay." But then he shot you that goofy, lopsided grin again, and you couldn’t help but smile back, even if it was a little shy.

"What?" you asked, giggling softly as you played with a lock of your blonde wig.

He shook his head, made a finger-gun motion with his hand, and turned to leave. But just as he took a step, he paused, spun back around, and said, "You know I like you, right?" His voice was casual, but his eyes told a different story.

"Stop messing with me…" you mumbled, barely above a whisper. Your heart was pounding in your chest. But instead of laughing, he stepped closer, hesitating for a moment before cupping your face gently. His eyes locked with yours, and for a second, the world seemed to stand still.

Then, he leaned in and gave you the softest, quickest kiss on the lips.

"Not messing with you, Misa," he said, dropping into L’s signature monotone. You couldn’t help it—you laughed so hard, your shoulders shook.

"Hey, no fair using my OTP!" you pouted, crossing your arms, but he just smirked and kissed you again.

"I’ll use whatever it takes to get you to notice me, nerd," he teased, his voice warm and playful. Then, with one last grin, he stepped back and turned to leave.

You stood there in the doorway, heart racing, watching Rodrick Heffley walk away like you’d just stepped out of the last scene of a shoujo anime.

[nightprompts]

&. 𝐟𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐬𝐚 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬.

(  dialogue  prompts  taken  from  furiosa: a mad max story  (2024),  directed  by  george  miller.  feel  free  to  edit  and  change  as  you  seem  fit.  ) 

❛ as the world falls around us, how must we brave its cruelties? ❜

❛ we should go back now. ❜

❛ i'll come with you. ❜

❛ the stars be with you. ❜

❛ who's coming for us? ❜

❛ who do we have here? ❜

❛ what do they call you? ❜

❛ now, you have had a hard day, haven't you? you must be exhausted. ❜

❛ there's only one thing i need you to do and that is rest. ❜

❛ you don't have to say a word, i promise. ❜

❛ tomorrow, i'll take you home. ❜

❛ keep an eye on her, keep her safe. ❜

❛ you're bleeding. ❜

❛ i'm not gonna leave you. ❜

❛ whatever you have to do, however long it takes, promise me you’ll find your way home. ❜

❛ no, no, no. don’t look away. we mustn’t look away. ❜

❛ why would you run from me? ❜

❛ you’re gonna have to show me who you are. ❜

❛ you don’t have to watch if you don’t want to. ❜

❛ you may wanna close your eyes. ❜

❛ you will rule with me in the splendor of a new wasteland. ❜

❛ i’m afraid for you, sweetheart. really afraid. ❜

❛ witness me! ❜

❛ you’re all fools for coming here. ❜

❛ when things go bonkers, you have to adapt. ❜

❛ she looks nothing like you. ❜

❛ she has her mother’s perfections, and none of my deficiencies. ❜

❛ she’s perfect. not like the genetic absurdities you have for sons. ❜

❛ would you like to stay here in the citadel? ❜

❛ if i let you stay and you grow to become a strong, healthy woman, you could become one of our wives. ❜

❛ no! she’s not for sale, she’s mine. ❜

❛ you behave, i’ll behave. ❜

❛ where have i seen you before? ❜

❛ we're going to build ourselves a war rig. ❜

❛ he done the most runs on the fury road. and brung back the booty every time. ❜

❛ eyes left. they’re flanking us. ❜

❛ you’re going to pull over and get out. ❜

❛ where did you think you were going? ❜

❛ there is nowhere else. this is the wasteland. wherever you thought you were going does not exist. ❜

❛ i lost my convoy. i lost my crew. i’m gonna have to start again. and i’m driving off thinking i ought to start with you. ❜

❛ you may be raw, but you have about you a purposeful savagery. ❜

❛ you give me time, i’ll teach you everything you need to know about road war. ❜

❛ if you survive everything we take on together, you’ll have all the skills you need to get wherever you wanna go. ❜

❛ keep it. you’ll need it. ❜

❛ for you. for your travels. you’re done here. you’re free to go. ❜

❛ food, water, wheels, whatever you need. i'll help you put it together. give me a couple of days. ❜

❛ i want what you want. a full belly... and a fistful of bullets for a tank of gas. ❜

❛ we’re not leaving without our tankers full of gas. ❜

❛ you wanna get out of here, follow me. ❜

❛ let’s kill him. right now. ❜

❛ this place at the end of your map of secrets... where is it? ❜

❛ i wanna help you find this place. wherever it may be. ❜

❛ come with me. ❜

❛ there is no hope! not for them, not for you! certainly not for me! ❜

❛ it’s the price we all pay to survive in the wasteland. we cannot be soft! ❜

❛ stay! you’ll find peace here. ❜

❛ if you find him, he’s mine. ❜

❛ gentlemans, it’s time. time to do war. ❜

❛ here, no time for long goodbyes. we’ve done some mighty things together. goodbye. ❜

❛ you’ve found me. ❜

❛ you could have necked me in the night, but you didn’t. ❜

❛ i have nothing. i am nothing. ❜

❛ remember me? ❜

❛ you crawled out of a pitiless grave, deeper than hell. and only one thing’s gonna do that for you. and not hope. hate. ❜

❛ no shame in hate. it's one of the great forces of nature. ❜

❛ so... this is the day i die. i’ve always wondered how. ❜

❛ my childhood. my mother. i want them back. ❜

❛ i'm right there, i’m right there with you. i too craved nothing but revenge. ❜

❛ if the shooter goes around the back, the shootee won’t know the precise moment of the execution. ❜

❛ what you want, dear, are my cries of anguish. anguish without end. and if i could give you that, i would. ❜

❛ if you can’t do me quick, you’ll have to do me slow. ❜

❛ i’ve been waiting for someone like you, someone worthy of me. ❜

❛ no honor, no rule of law to sort things out. just two evil bastards out here in the wasteland. ❜

❛ you do this, you do this right, you become me. ❜

❛ i am nothing like you. ❜

❛ you are me. already dead. ❜

❛ to feel alive, we seek sensation. any sensation to wash away the cranky black sorrow. ❜

❛ the question is... do you have it in you to make it epic? ❜

[myfairstarlight]

Alright, let's talk about Colin's entrapment line and why Penelope offering an annulment was significant, shall we? Arguably the most controversial part of this season, isn't it?

I'm not going to delve too long on the entrapment line again actually, but to summarise, Colin has been traumatised by a similar situation before, and right now, he's hurt. And the thing about being angry with your best friend is that you know what to say to hurt them the most. We see it in Eloise's and Penelope's fight, as they threw each other's insecurities in the other's faces. Colin, two episodes ago, was defending Penelope against Portia, who was accusing her of entrapping him, so yes, his mind will jump to that first. But also note that the whole time he refuses to look at her, because he knows his words are cutting and will hurt and he knows his resolve would break if he looked at her, which is contrasted by Penelope directly looking at him to tell him she loves him and did not mean for this to happen like this. He does not look because he knows she loves him, this is not Marina's situation exactly who only wanted a way out and did not see him as much else than a means to an end, and that's why it's so much more difficult to deal with for him. Penelope loves him.

And he's already almost lost her once, as angry and hurt as he is, he cannot fathom the idea of letting her go, when he remembers how empty he felt without her letters, or at the idea of her with Debling. So he's still here, determined to marry her.

So now we get to e8. The marriage was not technically consummated, and the Lady Whistledown business is finally settled. So Penelope offers the annulment, to set him, and his family, free from her mess.

They never directly address Colin's entrapment comment again, but with Penelope offering the annulment, it is now implied she's been thinking about this the whole time. It is a very real possibility that by that point, Penelope already knew she was pregnant, and it's been speculated if she told Colin in that scene after Francesca's wedding or not (I personally don't think she did, to not add to his guilt at that moment, and perhaps to not influence his decision, knowing she would be offering the annulment soon) and it parallels Marina's situation again, except in this case, Penelope does not wish to trap Colin with a baby, even if it is his. She knows how much Marina impacted Colin, and does not wish to do the same thing she had prevented Marina to do. The best part about this though? Colin is stunned (Edit: I changed the adjective here as someone rightfully pointed out I was exaggerating by saying "flabbergasted" when his reaction is more on the subtle side the English language is the bane of my existence). Frankly, he probably forgot he even said that, the same way he forgot about his "I would never dream of courting Penelope Featherington" comment - those were words said in the heat of the moment he never actually believed. Not once has Colin thought of either breaking the engagement, or get an annulment even after the betrayal.

He could have still eloped with Marina even after learning the truth, but he didn't because she was not honest with him from the start. He learns Penelope has been living a double life this whole time, and yet he stays.

It is significant that Penelope listened and acknowledged Colin's point of view, the same way she asked him to simply stand by her side and support her. Also note that she never says "our family", she says "you or your family".

Despite already being married, this whole time, it did not feel like they were, and she knew that as long as there was still this barrier between them, she could never truly be part of that family, but it's alright, she could live with that, she has mended things with her own after all, and she can support herself. Whatever the outcome, she'll be alright, she believes.

Fortunately for her, she does not get to find out what that future would entail because Colin absolutely hates the idea of letting her go.

Because after all, she's a mess, but she's his mess.

[lovely-writes-alot]

There's this story story compition that I'm planning on entering and I jsut finished writing it (editing with happen tomorrow lol) but I'm pretty sure there's several people who will want to read it so I shall gift it upon you all

I will have to cut out a good chunk of it cause it's like 450 words over the limit 😅

Unlike humans, I wasn't made from two people who love each other. I was made from clay, and was born in a kiln.

I don't remember being shaped, nor the process of coming into this world. I had no choice but to exist.

Humans, nor gods for that matter, tell you how hard existing is. I still can't really wrap my head around how much learning you have to do. Walking, Talking, Cooking, Cleaning. No wonder they get so exhausted.

Humans do have a significant advantage. They get to do more than just exist. They get to live. They don't realise how lucky they are to be able to do things so easily, feel emotions, just experience it all the way only a human can.

For the thousands of years I've existed I have longed for that, and I finally got my chance.

My creator, a god called Sanut, ushers me out the back door of him temple, continuous glancing behind him.

"Okay, dear. I'm going to busy for…. most of the day. Just come back when the sun starts setting. And just get out of view from the windows." He quickly turned to head back inside.

"What if I get lost?" I asked, my tone just as plain and monotone as normal.

"I'm a god, dear. I'll find you." I couldn't really argue with that, so I let him enter the temple again, before turning.

I wondered a little, trying to get used to the feeling of grass. It was a interesting texture. Spiky, but in a good way. I hoped it won't stain the white clay that I was made of.

The back part of the temple was in its own shadow at this point of the day, making it slightly cold. I didn't know shadows could do that.

Everything out here intrigued me. Whilst Sanut's temple was pretty, it couldn't compare to nature looked.

I continued to walk around the shadowed area, just taken all of it's beauty, and touching everything.

I'm surprised by how nice the bumps and unevenness of trees, rocks, and dirt felt. The way humans acted made me think the feeling would be unpleasant.

For the first time, I felt my curiosity override my need to keep myself safe, letting myself run my fingers across everything I could without worrying if my fingers would snap off.

I enjoyed my exploration for a while longer, before the bush rustles.

I completely froze. "Hello?" I call.

More rustling.

I stood there for a moment, not sure if I should run or investigate. Was rustling a good thing?

It rustled some more, the sound growing as whatever was in there came closer.

Whilst the rational part of me was screaming it run, I crept closer, trying to get a peek inside the bush.

Before I could get a good look inside, the creature walked out. It was a small, fluffy, rodent.

I stared for a moment, admiring it slightly, a strange feeling washing over me. It stared back, jsut for a second, before running off.

"Wait!" The words slipped from my mouth before I realised, and my legs started chasing it before my brain could catch up.

I trailed behind it for a while, weaving my way through the trees. I didn't know that the forest here was so dense.

I eventually came to a stop, letting the rodent run out of my sight.

I had stumbled across someone. A young girl, no older then 19, sitting in the middle of a ring of trees with a pile of flowers sat in front of her as she twisted them together.

I must've been staring for a while, as she eventually glanced up at me. "Are you going to continue staring or do you want to join?" She asked, her tone slightly teasing.

I imagined if I wasn't made of clay, I would've blush, but I welcomed the offer, and sat down next to her.

She had a small smile on her face, she happily continued weaving the flowers together as she hummed a soft tune under her breath. It was a beautiful melody, sometime I hadn't heard yet.

"What are you humming?" I asked.

"The night we met, by Lord Huron. It's one of my favorites."

I nodded. "Can't say I've heard of it."

The girls jaw dropped. "Do you live under a rock?!"

"Uh- no, I live in a temple-"

She chuckled. "I know that, silly."

"Oh."

Her gazed shifting following mine to the flowers. "Would you like to learn?" She asked.

"Learn what?"

"How to make a flower crown." She held hers round her head.

I nodded, quickly, hoping my neck wouldn't crack.

She moved closer grabbed a few flowers.

We stayed there, for most of the day. We make several crowns, we talked, we laughed, and it made me feel different. A nice different.

I learnt her name was Charlotte, and when she learnt that I didn't have a name, she demanded we fixed that. We decided on Delilah.

It wasn't until the sun set that we had to part ways, for now at least, but despite being alone once more, I felt like I had changed during that day, like somthing in me was unlocked.

***

We continued to meet up in the forest almost everyday, especially as Sanut's business increased.

Charlotte taught me a range of activities. Some went well, like drawing and acting, others, like swimming, weren't made for my body.

I started to grow fond of her, her presence becoming something that was intertwine in my life. Being around her, and experiencing this joy was something that was exhilarating. It was the only time I wished I could smile properly.

It was almost perfect, until it wasn't.

I started to notice that Charlotte's presence started to slow, only slowly, until it suddenly stopped completely.

The first time I was confused. she wouldn't just leave me like that, right?

I spent that entire day looking for her. I'm not really sure why I thought I would find her.

I felt a new emotion when I saw the sun setting. I started questioning why she hadn't shown. Was she sick? Was she busy? Did I upset her? Would she come back? All the thoughts swam around my head like a school of fish.

The next day, I went to look again. Still no sign of Charlotte.

The new feeling from yesterday came up even stronger, but instead of looking, I sat down, hoping that maybe she was just running late.

The same questions as before whirled around me, and other emotion started to build up. Anger.

I had seen anger before. Sanut had shown me anger before, but I didn't realise how much the anger came from the feeling I was feeling before.

All these feelings grew again as the sun started to set once more. Why did she stop showing up?

I repeated this cycle for multiple days, and after a while of nearly driving myself crazy with the questions, I started to feel different about it all.

Whilst I was still sad about the fact Charlotte stopped meeting me, another part of me was happy that I got to experience the memories with her I had.

I learnt a lot, about myself and the world, and that I really enjoyed doing certain things, especially stuff that was creative. If I hadn't met her, I never would've learnt that.

Once Sanut ushered me out for the 8th day, I walked much slower to the spot. I let myself enjoy the feeling of everything again. The grass, the trees, the sun. I soaked it all in like it would be the last time I felt it all.

I went to the same ring of trees I chased the rodent into. I hope it was okay after that, I must've given it quite the fright.

I looked around, only just noticing the wildflowers that had started to grow, adding bright colour to the area.

I went over, a picked some carefully, making sure that I left it all mostly undisturbed.

I took my little collect and I took it all to the centre area. I sat down, taking a few flowers, and started to weave them together, into a crown. I hummed a familiar tune to myself, a wave of joy coming over me again.

This time, Charlotte may have not been there, but I still felt happy, and that's all that mattered to me.

This joy was mine, no matter the circumstances.

Any thoughts and opinions are welcome and very much wanted

tagging people who I think will care

@hellincarnation @daonedaonlysk @jerry-the-leech @sunnies-theory-of-happiness @dreamboyinthedarkvoid @childofthewargod

[anakinskywalkerisfave]

Hello! I want to ask you something about Star Wars. What's your opinion on "love isn't attachment" interpretation of the Jedi Code that has been going around?

I think it’s a misrepresentation born out of an effort to make the Jedi Order seem perfect, instead of the noble but flawed institution that we see in both Disney canon and the Star Wars EU. It is a blatant disregard of both the general canonical and legends continuity that the Jedi Order did not allow love. Love is a type of attachment, at least in the Jedi's eyes, otherwise they would not be separating young children from their families.

And no, if the chosen one is doing just fine with his latent force powers, I don't think they're recuiting toddlers because they would otherwise "have no control" and be "a danger to others." Take that crap somewhere else, because I'm not buying it.

If they don’t care about loving people (ie your birth family), then why do we never see Jedi (aside from obvious exceptions like Anakin or Ki-Adi-Mundi) mention their family or keep in any form of touch with them? Why would they accept only very young children? Notably children whose memories of their time with their family would largely or wholly be lost due to childhood amnesia*, and therefore would not remember their attachment to their families and the love of their family. Regardless of whatever media tries to retcon the no love thing as love being acceptable and that attachment was a different thing, the most important canon (the movies) does not support this at all.

(*Childhood amnesia refers to the inability of most adults to recall memories from before the age of 3-4 years. It also refers to the fragmentation of memories from early childhood, especially from the ages of 3-6. This is paraphrased from the Wikipedia article on the subject.)

Also, if love (platonic or romantic) actually is allowed, then why would this official movie poster for Attack of the Clones exist? (Someone on youtube literally tried to argue with me that despite it being an official poster, it “didn’t mean anything." 🤨 By that logic, a movie advertised as R-rated can be assumed to be appropriate for children. Jedi apologists are truly dedicated to spiting their English teachers and anyone who tried to teach them about critical thinking or analysis.)

Bonus Round: Star Wars EU Edition

(read the paragraph on the right, starting at "Love is also a strong passion," and I also suggest reading the character's annotations on the side.)

They literally explain love is forbidden. While they say "those who obsess," in practice, it applies to any love, not just obsessive. (Also, it is a parent's job to prioritize the needs of their child. It's not "obsession" to put the child first, that's what you're supposed to do.) They are literally being told that wanting to contact their birth families is a cause of concern and that any attachment will cause you to "lose sight of your path" and are a cause for expulsion from the Order.

Once again, they are not allowed to connect with their birth families. The HoloNet calls it monstrous because it is. Separating a child from their parents is incredibly damaging, especially in early childhood*, (the age of recruitment into the Jedi Order) which is obvious, but this is the same fandom where I see people try (and fail) to justify child soldiers and using a slave army.

Sources about the detrimental effects of separating children from their parents:

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/article/psychological-damage-inflicted-by-parent-child-separation-is-deep-long-lasting/

https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2018/06/psychological-impact-early-life-stress-parental-separation

This excert is from a section called "Misperceptions of the Jedi" from The Jedi Path: A Manual for Students of the Force.

"This charge springs from the pain of emotional attachment. It's also technically false." If I had my child taken from me and had no way to get them back, I don't give a shit if you have legal authority. You are effectively a kidnapper. The child isn't being removed from their parent's care because of abuse or any other legitimate reason. It's because they want to indoctrinate them and it's far easier when they don't remember anything before being taken to the temple. So they don't have a pesky attachment or concern for their mom left in slavery, for example!

Anyway, Luke's Jedi Order from the EU >>>>>> the old Jedi Order

[cryptidcat5105]

Sky wielders AU

Part 2 baby, let's go!

Check out part 1 for context and also here's some art if anyone is interested

Edit: part 3

Spoilers for the entire Empyrean series

I don't really have much post Threshing, Dain still kisses Violet and Xaden still thinks she looks like she kissed her cousin. The fact that Violet and Xaden are now bonded kinda concerns her since she doesn't want to get the sky wielders killed if they get caught but she figures that how would he even know what they've been doing even if he finds out about their midnight meetings? How would he even know that venin actually exist? Right?

The following day features the squad bonding over their dragons and the shift in the hierarchy. Imogen joins the squad's table (Quinn also joins them if I remember correctly) making it clear she's there for Xaden's benefit (she also sits on the opposite end to Violet while loudly declaring that no, I'm not afraid of her, sHUT UP!)

The first year sky wielders also gathered to a table, adjacent to the squad's, with some of the older wielders. Ari, one of the first years immediately hits it off with Ridoc, much to the upper years' desperation.

Class and challenges continue as normal, with added flight maneuvers which become awkward for every wing because of Tairn and the other battle dragons. Later that week Kate tells Violet that the dragons knew exactly what they were doing when bonding them since they could smell the magic on them and that her dragon, Speur, was a bit disappointed when Violet herself wasn't a sky wielder. Violet wanted to ask more but Tairn quick shoved his way to the forefront of her counciousness demanding that 'the old hag stays out of his riders business!'. And that's how Violet and Kate find out Speur is Sgaeyl's mother and by the human definition, Tairn's mother-in-law. Ah, the things veteran dragons come out of retirement for!

Fast forward a bit and it's assassination attempt night™. Things begin as normal, with Violet getting woken up by her dragons and thrown right into fighting. Violet nearly gets stabbed to death but Andarna's time stopping powers come in. They don't hold for as long as in canon though, so as soon as she's out her door the time starts flowing again. As soon as she starts running down the corridor the door to the room after her's swings open and a still shirtless sky wielder, if his eyes are any indication, spots her and hightails it after her, slitting the neck of the first unbonded out of her room. Violet dared a glance back and she saw the first year (Owen if she recalled correctly) wave a hand back as if throwing something. A considerable shift in the air had Violet stumbling and when she looked back the remaining unbonded were crashing into a transparent, shimmering wall.

Owen keept running and grabbed her arm, pulling her along, when the realisation hit her, she couldn't contain her grin and half shouted "ward wielder".

Owen: not really, but whatever keeps you alive, Sage!

Once they turned the corner they came face to face with Xaden who was pissed and Owen quickly got in front of Violet, ready to throw out another shield. Violet gently put a hand on his forearm and let xaden pass, Garrick following right after.

After all this they still go to talk to the dragons and find out that Andarna is a baby but both Xaden and Violet have an incredibly hard time convincing Owen that she'll be safe before heading out.

The next day, before formation, Violet and Rhiannon are both woken up by angry shouting from the hallway. It was Xaden and Owen arguing, the latter looking ready to go for the throat and a very uncomfortable looking blond was awkwardly trying to keep the two from starting a fight.

Owen: THE ONLY PLACE I'LL MOVE TO IS MY GRAVE AFTER I DIE!

Xaden: Well that can be arranged, no problem!

Violet, addressing the blond: what are they fighting about?

Liam: Xaden wants me to be you shadow so he wants me to move next to you. I'm Liam by the way.

Violet: Huh! Well I'm not really in need of a bodyguard since I have that guy *points at Owen*, but if our oh so caring wingleader insists can't you two, I don't know, share?

And that's how Owen and Liam become roomies. More on that later :)

(Violet doesn't argue Liam being her shadow because she's already accustomed to the sky wielders following her whenever they can and making friends with her squad, so what's one more soul to have around)

Amber Mavis also gets roasted, literally, and when Dain tries to get the memory from Violet he gets pulled back by second year sky wielder. They wanted to tackle him but it would have been to much trouble.

Violet and Liam are on archive duty and she learns a lot of things about the marked ones and the Tyrrish rebellion. Liam makes a few subtle comments that might allude to the true reason the Tyrrish rebelled (which I'm not smart enough to write myself) after Violet notes that all the marked ones seam to avoid her like the plague. The Summerton letter also adds to the clues she keeps gathering.

(I haven't mentioned up until this point but Violet is confused as to why Navarre never mentioned that venin are real, no matter how ridiculous that sounds. So she started looking into it herself but the first years don't really know much besides the ranks, hence why they call her sage sometimes. The older ones do seem to know a bit more but are not very forth coming with information. They never outright lie to her about whatever she may ask, though. On the other hand, Andarna seems to want to tell Violet stuff but Tairn cuts her off most times saying "she needs to figure it out on her own". Violet knows that there are venin outside of Basgiath and that they're dangerous but she hasn't made the connection that they are the real enemy outside the wards)

The whole arguing in the gym happenes and Tairn and Andarna decided she's ready to channel so that night Violet wakes up all hot and bothered. She stumbles into Liam and Owen on her way out and Violet is worried since she is feeling exactly as the sky wielders described channeling from the earth (minus being horny) but Owen quickly pushes Liam back in their room with a waving motion to Violet as if to say not to worry.

Owen: C'mon blondie, let the girl do what the girl's gotta do. *Turns to Violet" Have fuuun... 🎶

Violet proceeds to find Xaden and do some good ol' smoochin' featuring newly manifested lightning signet.

While Violet doesn't realize she manifested her signet, some signs are still there. In canon they say it's power wieldering that manifested as lighting but I believe thinking about it as more than that could actually open some possibilities. In this AU Violet can actually sense the power around her now, the way each source is different and the way that magic flows is unique to every living being. She could recognize if someone is around and who they are just by their magic alone and I feel like all the sky wielders would feel very different to all the other riders. She asks them if sensing magic is normal to every rider but they explain that while sky wielders and venin can sense each other they can't feel the normal riders and the riders can't sense them in turn. The only exception being Violet, but they chalk it up to her spending too much time around them. They also say that she feels like one of them but not really, so they theorise that their magic is somehow clinging to her, like a scent or something (after they discover her signet it'll make much more sense for them but for now I want them to go nuts with theories)

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

[curio-queries]

I saw Jungkook's documentary this weekend and have just a few thoughts. If you're avoiding spoilers, don't click the cut!

The Hybe Documentary Format

So...as a reminder to you all, I do not have professional expertise in the film industry. I'm just a very discerning consumer. I also haven't seen Hobi's documentary and I watched Road to D-Day while I was quite ill last year so I only vaguely remember some bits. (I'll definitely be getting back to those sooner rather than later though as research for a series of posts I'm developing.) That being said, I think we have enough data points to state that Hybe has absolutely no interest in filmmaking techniques outside of music videos.

I did mostly enjoy my experience seeing this film yesterday and I'm always grateful for any amount of footage the members are willing to share with us but this 'documentary ' was worse than Jimin's Production Diary. Any of you that managed to make it through my rambling review will know how dissatisfied I was with that.

I Am Still is not a documentary, it's a mixture of showcase footage and behind-the-scenes clips, most of which has already been divulged in the various episodes and shooting sketches on YouTube. Honestly, if you're not able to see the film, just go rewatch all of the bangtantv content for JKs solo period and the showcase and you'll be up to speed with 85% of what was in the documentary.

There are definitely some expansions to the storylines featured in the bangtantv content; mostly being anything that wasn't overtly optimistic. For example, we learn a little bit more about just how sick JK was during the Seven/3D promotions. That content likely was pulled from the bangtantv edit because it would have put a damper on the promotions and given certain 'fans' a focus to fixate their vitriol. But overall, it feels more like an extended version of existing content rather than a new work. At least JPD didn't continually feed us footage we'd seen before.

I'm someone who gets completely bothered by previews spoiling content so I didn't watch any of the promos until after I saw it and I am so glad I skipped them because most of the 'original' scenes of the film were featured in least one of them. Alas, that's a separate issue of which I'm definitely in the minority.

Was There No Structure?

Kinda. Like JPD, there is a semblance of a structure: Attempting to follow the chronology of release activities for JKs GOLDEN album through the lens of JKs staement trying to prove that he is still worthy of everything he was being hailed as during the BTS group activities but I don't feel this was successfully executed. It jumps round enough and isn't very successful in explaining the events if you didn't already know about them. The film starts with the SEVEN performance at GMA and footage that we've already seen of JK recording SEVEN, not mentioning anything about the music video or really how JK got involved with the song in the first place. The rest of the story beats have similar missing points.

They have a vague narrative with the 'I Am Still' points but that's mostly carried by subs and a couple of moments that JK mentions himself. I'm not saying it's not true or wasn't top-of-mind for JK during this process but it's not the main point of many of the moment/messages he shared with us during this time period so it feels a little disingenuous since everything else jn this film really only makes sense if you've already seen quite a lot of behind-the-scenes content.

Honestly, it makes me question the intended audience. Obviously, they know that ARMY will shell out whatever we need to when there's new content from our members but most of us will have already seen all of the bangtantv content so we are already familiar with the most of the footage in this film. I genuinely don't think this was produced in such a way to be palatable for audiences not familiar with BTS so who does that leave? Our friends and family that are peripherally aware of the content but haven't learned the basics of JKs album? ARMY with short term memories only?

But again, it seems this film was compiled by an editing team and not lead by a director with experience in crafting a documentary. The only new footage that Ican guarantee was captured with the express purpose of being included in this film was the few clips of JK talking in the practice room with the albums displayed by him. But we all know that's where all of the promo clips were gathered as well. I have issues with that approach as well but I'll leave this point alone for now unless anyone is interested.

Suffice it to say, all of these suppositions over the past year about how JKs documentary was getting special treatment or even questioning about investment in a project up front are dead. This was a product assembled with bits of what they already had completely in-house which was sold for distribution.

So, Did We Learn NOTHING?

No, there are a few Golden nuggets (see what I did there?). I can't recall everything having only seen it once (and having a rather disruptive audience - I swear there were only dozen or so ppl in my theater but I forget how obnoxious teenagers can be. I'm glad they're enjoying and supporting but we really didn't need light sticks flashing during a film and how many times does one person need to get up to answer their phone during this runtime? Three according to the row in front of mine.)

Anyway, something I thought was interesting to learn was that Standing Next To You was initially recorded the day after JK heard it for the first time. And hearing a little more about how JK yearned to perform that song definitelygot me thinking a little more about it. We can't reach any conclusions just with this little nugget but it does open the door to some theories. Like perhaps they were initially planning to have JK record two separate albums? SEVEN and 3D would be the singles of the first and JK would perform them as we saw but perhaps STNY was originally planned to be the single of the 2nd album that would release while he was in the military and thus be unable to perform it? Maybe JK loved STNY so much that everything was grouped into one album and Never Let Go was the only track held back for ms? Definitely some theorizing space to be had now.

Final thoughts?

Similar to my thoughts on the GCF: Budapest (which I feel would have had a much better reception if it had been labeled as a bangtan episode rather than a GCF), I AM Still should not have purported to be a documentary. It was much more similar to the annual Memories compilations. But the general public would not have shelled out the $25 to go to a theater to watch a Memories DVD so alas, we have our content packaged as a ~documentary~...

Did my view on the music change at all? Not because of the documentary. We're coming up on the year anniversary of GOLDEN and it's still definitely not my favorite. I completely understand why some people like it but it's just not to my taste. The overall impact falls a little flat for me. Too much breadth and not enough depth. I came into my musical soul during the 00s emo phase and will always be a sucker for music that absolutely drips in an emotional way rather than catchy songs vaguely referencing heartache and love. Again, just a matter of viewpoint.

I do think most of these songs stand much better being shuffled amongst other artists in a Playlist and several of them are significantly better when JK sang them live but I still won't be listening to them regularly. I wholeheartedly believe JK completed his task of proving himself as an extremely dedicated and versatile singer and performer. He's definitely got some solid points added to his resume after this project.

[stromuprisahat]

I love your takes on the grishaverse so I was wondering what you thoughts was on the theory/headcanon that Alina didn’t really lose her powers but unknowingly locked them as she did before the books’ beginning? Maybe there was a period where she couldn’t summon light bcs she was too exhausted and stressed out by the whole ‘final battle’ thing – banishing thee Fold, Mal’s ‘death’, Darkling’s death – so she assumed she had lost it. And then it was easier to unknowingly continue like that bcs it allowed her to remove herself from ruling and making any decisions and just have her simple co-depended life with Mal as she always wanted.

Personally, I don’t think that’s what happened in canon (certainly not what Bardugo meant) but I find it feasible as fanon interpretation, considering how depressed and deluded Alina appears post-RAR.

I'm more leaning into the explanation, that she intentionally, yet subconsciously rid herself of them (and maybe revived Malyen, when we're at it, since the second life bullshit is just that- bullshit that doesn't make sense, since no other amplifier's running around the same way. But then again- I'm very skeptical, when it comes to Malyen actually being one- he has no properties others do.).

Alina recognizes that as long as she's Grisha, she won't be able to be only with Malyen, and she already admitted she's trying to mould herself into whatever he seems to want from her.

Merzost doesn't seem to be random- it's driven by intention. Ilya "upgraded" mythical animals to have certain properties, Aleksander fucked up first, but then managed to find a way to actively protect his people, when in situation his powers weren't enough. Alina lost what made her special, but since her goal wasn't finished yet, other Sun Summoners sprang into existence and fucked up destruction of the Fold, because it's merzost-made, therefore logic tells us ordinary Small Science shouldn't be enough to vanquish it.

It's true the previous time Alina worked with merzost, her powers "disappeared" for a while, but the "magic" also isn't working from nothing. No matter what we're told, there is a cost, some input. It's not "pure creation". We can see it, when Sasha makes nichevo'ya- he's using his own essence, his life force or whatever want you to call it, to draw them into existence, so Alina would need ~something~ to distribute her powers among others, and the amplifiers are just that- they amplify, wider one's range, not give a new ability.

Besides- there's the question of what grandpa Ilya wanted. If he aimed at Grisha being accepted, instead of othered, why would he take away from one the give to more. It might look pragmatic, but the range is too limited and even if he created such "tools" over and over- he'd only make a new caste of "once-Grisha", instead of levelling the playing field.

One of my fellow fans also pointed out that if merzost is magic, perhaps Alina used it to become an ordinary otkazat'sya. I don't believe so. She might've made herself to appear as one, but after all those books spent reading how is being Grisha integral part of their being, something that makes them themselves... looking at post R&R Chapter 17 Alina isn't looking at slightly more traumatized Alina that can't summon the Light because it's not a part of her. It's looking at a husk of the girl, just like the ends of previous books, when she was suffering due to missing her powers on physical level.

And her lack of skill, when using merzost previous time would support it. She locked away her powers and her hair went white the first time. She got rid of her Light, but her body "remembers" it's missing something.

edit: Also- thank you for (positive) feedback, I'm not being rude, I'm just an social idiot with totally not ADHD, so I get focused on "the point", and forget the social stuff like greeting and replying to nice words, which ARE very motivating for me, but HERE'S THE STUFF I'm thinking about and my brain's coming up with coherent answers- LOOK!

[theaskscenter]

Girl why gpt posts?? I liked your raw style more.

I like edited more. The raw looks like

So I was talking to my manz (see how he earned this title after I signed a prenup, not after I got a ring? Very smart very thatbitch very demure. I don't go committing myself to anything before I see paperwork I think from reality and future instead of emotion and promises. See how I negotiated and manipulated with that prenup. Very IT girl very Smart girl I don't take chances with my life very classy) about going back to therapy because why am I always attracting criminals? And not even robbed a bank or death body count of ten we are talking dark, dark people and he shrugs about 'you are just so you' which after a lot of prodding because men can't say shit straight ever actually meant 'its because people feel like they can tell you things' which disgusted me because you're saying I come across as an emotional dumpster and apparently nope I'm just 'trustable with this kind of thing, you know?' and to the question 'why in hell are you saying it like it's a good thing' the answer - which is the main topic of this, was 'it means you're an asset'.

Womanhood is not a spectrum actually it's set on stone and that stone is this - I. Do. Nauuttt. Give. A . Fooook. For. Free. The highest form of femininity is indifference because femininity is surrender (not submission. That's masculinity. The highest form of masculinity is submission. See- wars. Legacy. Workplace politics. Reputation andManhood) and surrender is indifference. When you surrender to something you are completely impartial to it, hence indifferent. And this concept is so hard to explain because it's girls that want to be a 'bad bitch' that think this means they should just be careless because IDGAF and that's the highest form of stupidity. Indifference as in 'I am separate from the outcome and impartial to the process, but committed to my goal / outcome. It's indifference to the process but commitment to the outcome.

When I was young in high school there was literally no form of power to leverage because there are such limited forms of power in the world and I was getting bullied 24/7 because there isn nothing for me to leverage to buy consideration. And because of this everyne and their dog including teaches used me as a traum dumpster because what am I going to do? Blackmail them? Which thank God I am me and me is incredibky smart because me turned that into power. How? By being selective about who gets free journal privileges wth me. Say, in the dorm if some girl sat on my bed and tried to trauma dump but did not earn the right to yet id just echo a HM and doe verything but listen. Its like -mhm- while I fold my clothes and midway go- hey are you sitting on my blouse? No? Uh where is it? so they know I wasn't listening. Which would, I found, lead them to want to make me listen (Because one week ago I was why am I not rn?) and they'd go are you even listening and id be like yeah you were talking about your mom or something? (steal a look force a smile) if you're not sitting on my blouse where is it? -and then go back to my whatever without trying to reestablish connection (ps, blouse doesn't exist lol) and then that would be them freaking out ebcaus ethe power has been flipped which led to the Ugh youre not even that important to which id be like yeah you told the that three sundays ago I still remember. have you seen my hairpin? AND when people earned the right to trauma dump, I learned theyre just looking for indifference. They just want to be heard. SO exmaple a guy would ask if they can sit by my table on lunch and Id just shrug i dont own the tables? You can sit on the table itself if you want to how does this concern me? And then hed sit and id look at him once every ten minutes as he attempted trauma dumping and i'd play the same game like - him: Trauma dumping. Me, mid sentence: Do you have this textbook? I need to buy one but its hard being broke. Him: No but I'll buy you one. Me; smiles. When? HIm: After school? Me: Okay see you here then. 5p.m? I'll get a permission slip. Leaves the table. WHen evening came and we did in fact go buy the texbook, then, and ONLY then, would i actually listen. After check out- Maybe your mom wouldn't be so shitty if you weren't so shitty? Just do what she wants she'll give you your freedom. She just wants submission. Humor her. waits for him to hold the door oprn so he can drive us back to campus. To which you would think -MOther isn't that the exact opposite of being indifferent? Well yes- but if I agreed it'd be obvious I'm kissing ass. PIcking both his side (you're not wromg) and her side (neither is she. You can both win) to say I was listening you just hadn't earend the right to be yapping family busines at me when im eating the lunch youre paying for. People are so easy to train if you have the patience for it.

Sp my indigference is an asset because it's earned. No I do not care to listen to you babbling about your cocaine trade thats ruining south America unless I'm getting something out of it. When you're in the same space as people they assume you're on the same level unless its obviou you're not (eg, scholarship kid that is known to be scholarship kid) and they have to find a way to establish hierarchy, and then attention becomes te modal of it. Are you someone that gives your tuime easily? Are you someone that takes sides? Can you be trusted? And think of it this way- do YOU trust things yiu get for free? If I gave you a BIrkin for free, would YOU trust it? Obviously no, you'd be suspicious. SO if I'm at an event and someone's underloved dad that has had to buy all his intimacy because he would ratheer die than develop emotional intelligence decides to strut-waddle over talk about his illegal streams of income I make the most mechanical obvious I'm not interested in hearing this face and reaction and at some point drop the - wait did't you recently aquire this one firm? That was something, how did you get them to sell? Are you publicly listed yet? How does one get on the investors list when it's still private? Yeah I know it's not easy thats why Im asking the CEO not google? and when I get an answer its- you know its not my place or my trade but if I were to take a route for it i'd avoid the one you're taking and take this on here- it makes more sense. I'm no lawyer obviously but think of it this way- I will ONLY lsiten when there's a reason for me to.

SO how is this an asset? It means I easily make it to the advisors table. Every. Single. Time. Some boy that used to bully me first year of high school offered me Board Of Directors position in a firm I'm not even in because he can tell me he killed his mom and I'll say okay. Anyway -. And he will be secure in the secrecy I'l keep because I do have something to lose - whatever he used to bargain his way into having me as his journal. And not only will I not judge I'll also not offer advice or praise him for it. None of my busines, you know. Moving on. I need you to understand outside JK Rowling and Taylor Swift and people that become billionaires through intellectual Property ? talent there isnt a SINGLE ethical billionaire on the face of the planet earth. If you want to dine with the fortune 500 you need to look at actual human abuse and say huh. Anyway- and the big money you want so bad is held by people that feel repressed inside their own bodies because theu are human beings so social creatures that need companionship and connection which comes from sharing but they can't do that because its always smeone trying to 'hypergamy' their way into their pockets an dif you make yourself a safe space they will end whole races of people for you. I said tehres a KKK level white supremacist dude that would break up with his Gigi Hadid of a wife if I didn't like her and everyone (literally only two people lol) were womdering how that hapened and the thing is I'm a safe space on the condition I am also safw within this space. I will listen to you rant about how your Aderall drug business is stressing you while eating ice cream on your balcony and just- wow thats something. WHat did you do after that? - and then after yourcrime confessions I'll groan about my aviation exams like what was I thinking.

I will make you feel normal. I will offer you humanity. Normalcy. Stability. No judgement- without OFFERING MYSELF. This right here this is the catch. If you piss me off I'll cut you off. If I feel disrespected ONCE I'll walk out, and I'll hold nothing over your head. Even if we break up, your secrets are safe with me. Thats it that's the catch point. In this relationship, one of us needs the other. DO the math.

I'll be honest I don't really care much about grammar this is actually for y'all. And it's not GPT its copilot

[lavender-long-stories]

🌿 ⇢ give some advice on writer's block and low creativity

🌿 give some advice on writer's block and low creativity

Honestly, this is a great question right now because I have been experiencing low creativity lately, so I do have a few things fresh on my mind.

First, recognize and accept how you are feeling and let go of the idea that you are a failure. Yes it is frustrating, but it's more frustrating to fight it. You have highs, and therefore, you also have to have lows. Abuse your highs because they won't always be there, and ride out your lows, knowing that they are only temporary. 

That being said, I don't agree with the idea of just putting everything down and walking away from it. I think that you shouldn't force yourself to do what you were doing before, but I don't think cold stopping is good. I swear by the idea no matter what, do a little nugget. It doesn't have to be good but do it. Whether it is 200 words, a little doddle, a line of knitting, or whatever the smaller nugget of your craft is.

And when you are in low creativity, be nice to yourself. Do not go deleting things that feel like trash while you are at a low point. Wait. Just let it sit. It's not hurting anyone, existing. Anything you make at a low point is going to feel gray until you can see colors again

I think it’s good to go looking for inspiration but have low expectations of what will come out of it. If it makes you write a paragraph or half an idea or just makes you excited thinking about your craft, then that is enough. Remember, don’t delete anything while in this mood. Any idea you have, keep it to read when you can actually consider it.

Where to find inspiration: 

Your own work. I love rereading my old work. Even if I don’t get anything new, it's a great time. DON’T edit, just enjoy. No critique, just vibes. Do you find something you wish you did differently? That sounds like a creative idea… you should write that down and put in a new work.

Watch a show, read a book, or find art in your genre. Now, I will add here to exclude other people's fan work in this if you compare yourself to others. I would say don’t compare yourself to others, but that is not really something that is just a ‘turn off when I am already at a low point’ kind of thing, so just avoid things that make you feel worse.

ON THAT NOTE: While you are down here feeling the low, creativity. Take notes. Take notes on what worked. A show gave you an idea? Write it down. Now you know to try it next time. Let me promise you that you will not remember. Keep it somewhere and add to it even if it feels stupid or trivial. (Some of these are from mine.)

Take care of yourself. Low creativity isn’t always a sign that you haven’t, but it certainly doesn’t help. Your brain is a part of your body. Eat well, drink water, take a shower. I am not kidding about the shower. I can not tell you the amount of times when I am thinking ‘Why do I hate everything right now?’ and the answer was that I needed to wash my hair. Bonus: shower thoughts, bathroom break thoughts. Take your phone to the bathroom with a note doc open. You might catch something.

For other writing advice: I made a Q&A for my 1 Million Words in 2024

This ask is referring to this: Writers Truth & Dare Ask Game

[very-bad-poetry-captain]

TOS novel book review McCoy edition nr 4 - Planet of Judgment

I knew there was a TOS novel where McCoy's wife was called Honey and she divorced him because they hadn't been intimate in three whole weeks, but I didn't remember it was Planet of Judgment. And I am judging this book.

Link to the previous review

Title: Planet of Judgment Author: Joe Haldeman Year published: 1977 (this was one of the very first trek novels ever published)

Content warning: a few descriptions of dying and wounded people, a bit of body horror

Plot summary in two sentences: A pretty large landing party including Kirk, Spock, and McCoy get stuck on a planet where natural laws don't seem to work and they have a few very bad no good days playing "stranded on a planet trying to kill us" before the aliens make contact, and then they are experimented on but like, it's clearly for a good reason so it's all fine (it's not). This book seemed like it could have been a TOS episode but mercifully it wasn't. Official plot summary: Never before had the Enterprise been betrayed by its own technology. Never before had their systems, instruments and weapons failed to respond. And never before had Kirk, Spock, McCoy and the rest of the crew faced a total breakdown of science and sanity... until they stumbled on the mysterious world that couldn't exist... A world orbited by a black hole ruled by chaos - where man was a helpless plaything for a race of beings more powerful than the laws of the universe. A brain-bending voyage into the unknown with the Starship ENTERPRISE.

This book is for you if you:

Kinda like the classic 70s scifi plot style

Want to read every novel that has McCoy in it (his parts are fun)

Enjoy philosophical questions such as "Is experimenting on aliens ethical if the constant 'clatter clatter' from their brains is really annoying? Like, super annoying. Honest." and "If Spock has read romance novels and knows about fake dating, does that mean every fanfic on the subject where it's Spock's idea is no longer out of character (asking for a friend)?"

Want to read a really detailed description of the scene on Vulcan in Amok Time minus the part about Jim's shirt being sliced open because that was apparently not important

This book was 50% not very interesting and 50% wow, he really wrote that huh 🫢

The ultimate McCoy questionnaire under the read-more (some spoilers):

1. Is McCoy in it?

Yes! More than I excepted at the beginning of the book!

2. Is McCoy in it a lot?

If you can get through the first part of the book, McCoy gets lots of time to shine. If you cut out most of the book and keep the McCoy parts I'd say it was a really good book.

3. Does he get to be concerned over whatever angst has befallen Kirk lately?

Well, yes and no. He's befallen with the same angst. Mostly. He gets to sneak in a "heh I really don't envy you having to be captain, Captain" in there. And there's a few hours where he thinks Jim is dead. The book doesn't linger too much on his anxiety but to be fair the book skips ahead quite a lot and isn't too keen on explanations.

But in a memorable scene he cuts down a tree and it falls right on top Jim 🤨

4. Does he get to have silly little arguments with Spock?

Read these excerpts from the book and tell me this isn't potentially the weirdest exchange of words he's ever had with Spock.

There was a really classic exchange though between the three of them that hit their dynamic just right (after Spock and McCoy join Jim to be stranded with him on the planet because they missed him):

Spock: You volunteered for the mission, Doctor. Surely there must have been some thread of logic to support your decision.

McCoy: Only intuition, Spock. Worked out the same.

Kirk: Whatever your reasons, I'm glad to see both of you but sorry we put you in the soup.

5. Is he the damsel in distress?

Not at all :/ But he does say "Good God. I wish Jim was here." so at least he was feeling like a damsel in distress.

6. Does he suffer, preferably a lot? Physical and/or psychological torment.

Mostly psychological, there's the experimenting of course and an injured crewmember that disappears and comes back all wrong and of course he blames himself for it for a while. And he gets to re-live when his wife left him. Because they, uh, haven't been intimate since March 3rd (three weeks ago). Presumably that wasn't the only thing but his immediate reaction to her taking their daughter and leaving the apartment is seeing an ad for Starfleet in a magazine and going "oh yeah I'll join Starfleet, that'll show her". Show her what? I have questions, Mr. Haldeman. And I think he could have suffered a bit more but I suppose there needed to be enough room for Kirk to have a sword-fight against pirates.

7. Does he get to whine and complain and be right about it? Even better, is he wrong about it?

Both he and Jim have these weird little rambling half-asleep thinking sessions that take up a couple of pages of unstructured and barely legible writing. He does complain about the experimentation though, and he gives Jim a really dirty look once. Most of his complaints are very reasonable in this one.

8. Does he get to throw some of that southern charm around?

There's a throwaway line that he's interested in one of the women in the landing party, but it really is thrown away and not used? He's always charming, though. Why is this even a question. Even Spock agrees in this book.

9. Does he get to do some medical malpractice?

Well now. He has to do stitches and use a knife, not even a clean one. And you know he hates such medieval practices but the medical instruments aren't working. I'd say that counts as medical malpractice. He also gets to kill a guy? I think that goes against his oath or something.

10. Does Spock call him illogical or similar?

Only a little bit. This is one of those missions where they finish each other's thoughts etc. so like. They're besties<3

11. Is he forcibly put through his arch nemesis the transporter? Or the dress uniform?

He has to go in a shuttle (not shown but I assume he didn't like it) and then he gets telepathically beamed through space by aliens with pretty bad aim several times :3

12. Does Kirk call him handsome (joke or not this happens more than you’d think)?

No but he complains that McCoy knows all the ship's scuttlebutt about who's sleeping with who and so on. McCoy was so ready to read out a list to Jim but I think he decided that as captain he's better off not knowing. And he tells McCoy not to get into mutiny-territory which, when you think about it, is kind of the same as calling him hot.

13. Bonus points if his accent is pronounced and his speech is full of befuddling southern expressions which make Spock question McCoy’s sanity (and me wondering if I need a dictionary)

He calls Spock "weirder than a whistling fish" and it took me forever to realize it wasn't some southern expression (or is it?) it's just that if a fish whistled it would be pretty weird. Anyway Spock is like yeah okay fair enough.

McCoy calls one of the aliens "ugly son of a bitch" so at least he got to swear in this one.

Criticisms/things I’d change

I'm sure this book is a product of its time so I won't be too hard on it. But if I could, I'd definitely elaborate on the scene where Spock asks McCoy to help him get rid of Chapel's interest in him. Like, I just think it has so much potential. Just trust me on this I'll make it really normal and not at all weird (it was already weird). Jokes aside I think they spent too much time playing "help we're stranded on a planet trying to kill us" and in the end no one even explained how all the science around the planet worked, just chalked it up to "oooh powerful aliens". The ending was interesting though. Being experimented on is enrichment for Starfleet officers.

Highlights:

To be honest the best part was where the aliens beamed everyone back to the ship using their mind powers only, except for Jim and Spock, and then after ten minutes they were like hey actually we made a mistake we're bringing McCoy back. They put my poor wife through something worse than the transporter twice when they could have just kept him on the planet all along, and said hey how about you help us save the world against evil scorpions with your will power, no pressure but we start in ten minutes and you'll probably die :D Also he sleeps on a bunch of cardboard boxes? And gets to cut down trees with the scifi equivalent of a chainsaw? And he gets to play mind poker in some kind of gangster movie setting... Fun times all around!

Final McCoy meter: 8/10

[19thperson]

19th's Steam Next Fest Impressions Feb 2025 Edition - Day 1

Day 0

Played some demos today, but I was worn out enough that I don't feel fully confident in the actual writing of the impressions. Whatever though.

Monster Train 2

Aside from its floor system, the most unique and fun part of the original Monster Train was the fact that each run had the player choose two factions, like mixed color decks in Magic. I can't really gauge how it plays out here, because they only give you two factions here, no room to mix and match. Expected for a demo, but mildly frustrating.

They've added more to this game. the previous one was mostly "play cards and spells, then let character abilities and combat automatically play out." Here some units will have abilities that can be manually activated, with turn based cooldowns. You can now spend equipment on unit cards. You have floor cards that give special effects to individual floors. They've upped the complexity, but in my short time playing… It feels a lot less elegant. My mind might change as I get to grips with it, though.

Last one is that they're making this one more plotty. More characters with dialogue and character interactions between runs. And I can't really comment on it so far but… I don't think Monster Train needed this.

Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3

Apparently this game has been a long running gag for Strange Scaffold, devs of El Paso Elsewhere, I Am Your Beast, and Clickholding. I am out of the loop of this specific joke though.

The game is a very loose parody of resident evil and survival horror games in general, in the form of a match 3 game. You come across a variety of obstacles, and each one you play a puzzle board to get resources to use skills to solve said obstacles. An interesting wrinkle is that after you make a match, whatever you're fighting gets a chance to match-3, so you not only need to get the symbols you need, but also try to starve out your opponent from getting the symbols they need. It also makes it harder to pull off multi-turn setups.

In between the match 3 matches is a simple text based exploration system, CYOA into different rooms and make different choices. Certain choices will unlock traits that will make new choices available in previous areas, so the devs call it a metroidvania even though it's…not. that?

Anyways, the team apparently has made a name for itself with it's writing, haven't played much of their output, but. That isn't on display here yet. Early on after dying once the protagonist realizes he's in a video game and a buggy as fuck one. And from there all the humor is gamer webcomic "isn't video game logic wacky" humor. The ability to go back with new traits is the protag exploring with "debug mode" on.

There is some mild intrigue with the very end of the demo, though, with the swerve that the protag learns his game is buggy because… it was cancelled. There's nothing for him anymore. And you could possibly go somewhere with that. I just hope they do so with a better set of jokes.

Detective Instinct: Farewell, My Beloved

Before anything else, I gotta say that I'm really digging this game's aesthetic. With it's chunky but detailed and expressive character sprites, but backrounds made with explicitly lower detail 3D, it screams original DS.

The interaction is the basic ADV-style "look at background to get bits of info and then run through every dialogue option with every character" that you get with phoenix wright investigation sections.

The plot of the game sounds interesting. During a cross country train ride, a woman disappears, and the protag and assistant duo seem to be the only ones who remember she actually existed. The plot of the demo… isn't much there. You don't even get on the train.

There is some intrigue. The game opening up with a man falling from a 5th story hotel room (and your player character getting falsely accused by the comic relief incompetent cop because he mixed up rooms 105 and 501). There's some fun interactions, like the eccentric detective letting tourists poke around a crime scene while all the other officers are sick of his shit or your weirdly excited co-traveler diving too enthusiastically into the opportunity, and it's all held up by great spritework, but you don't really get to solve anything.

So far, it's a game that runs solely on vibes. But the vibes are excellent.

Isopod

Like webbed before it, this game is a physics platformer starring realistic yet cute bugs in Australia. The biggest shifts are the move from 2d to 3d, and the inexplicable extra power moving from a laser to magnet powers.

The magnet is an equal parts blessing and curse. The name of the game is momentum, and aside from slopes the main tool to do this is using magnetic pull. When it works its incredible. But the game auto-targets what you're magnetizing to, and if you misjudge it, the closest magnet being behind you, you're whipped backwards and your momentum is killed. I'm not sure if it's a system issue or a skill issue.

I was frustrated with the demo's Koopa-the-Quick style race. The game asks you to run through gates, but their hitbox is relatively unforgiving, it's too easy to slip passed it when your momentum is high.

I wasn't able to finish this one due to time. I may revisit it, but for now I'll leave it as: Less intuitive than Webbed, but more potential. May need some polishing.

[vividiana]

17, 21 (I will not ask), 46? <3

thank you for these 💜 the questions are from this post

17. What highly specific AU do you want to read or write even though you might be the only person to appreciate it? I would love to read a BG3 x The Good Place crossover, where our beloved tadpole idiots are placed into The Good Place universe/system. I really can't say much more without spoiling the whole premise of the show lol. but anyways, this doesn't seem to exist, at least not on AO3. so if anyone would want to give it a try, you have my blessing! and if not, I guess I'll just do it myself one of these days

21. If you wrote a “missing scene” in "I Will Not Ask and Neither Should You", what would it be? hmm this one stumped me for a bit. I think it would be fun to write a scene about Eve and Lae'zel's first meeting, which I might end up doing through flashbacks. another option would be to write Astarion's first visit at the Blushing Mermaid from his POV. I just love getting into his brain and I think it would be fun to explore his first impressions of Eve and also whatever he had going on internally that day, since we know he was a bit of a nervous mess

46. Do you prefer writing on your phone or on a computer (or something else)? Do you think where you write affects the way you write? I generally prefer to write on my computer—that's when I feel the most "locked in" so to speak. that's how I finish and edit my drafts. my phone is mostly for jotting down ideas as they come to me throughout the day (or right before bed, when I'm convinced I won't remember it come morning). I have also recently started writing some scenes by hand in my notebook, though that's mostly when I'm out in nature and I don't want to be looking at screens. either way, the "polishing" stage always happens on my computer

[chevelleneech]

https://www.tumblr.com/chevelleneech/761066997012414464/watching-frankie-biggz-react-to-the-bts-guide-and?source=share

This thing frustrates me sooooo much so I'm just trying to not go to places where i know I'll see shit you know? I'm in my delulu land where i can be like "if i don't see it then it's not there" when i know it's happening there but still.

I was just thinking about how all jimin and jungkook watch YouTube like that's there go to app for yrs, jk is on tiktok as well where the whole army side is again infected with Tkkrs just like YT as well and jm used to have tikto atleast during covid (as we saw on his phone during BTS's last doc where we saw his home for the first time, he could still be having) and both of them watch members related stuff and Army's made videos as well so out if frustration I'm like They all see it , they see what's been said in those video and how they're portrayed and if they're not giving shits about it is it really worth that we keep fighting these loosers? No. So ig from now on I'm just gonna let ppl think whatever they want of jimin-jungkook's friendship if ppl want to believe they hate e/o so be it, if they think jungkook is forced then so be it.

I remember well that one time when tkklives acct was taken (like Locked or smtg) and then later it was given back to her by BH with a fatass pop-up that the channel doens't cross any boundaries or wtv and she said that BH was quite good to her as in that they didn't take down her acct or shit like that. The point is if people with power who can actually do something about these things don't care is it really worth it that we give it this much attention? Jikook thinks their Fandom loves them when it hates them together so let it be.

This was just my frustrated rant tbh. After yrs of seeing the same shit happening and getting mad over things i can't do anything about I'm just gonna take a step back and let things be. There's no hope for the betterment of this Fandom They're gonna say jikook fanservice for the rest of BTS's existence and there's no turning back there. And given how both jm and jk are private and don't post their personal things online everyone is gonna keep questioning it saying they don't meet apart from work while others who post are gonna be called closest the same that happened in 2023. Although it's been happening since before 2023 but it's just gonna get worse so I'm gonna let people handle it who can actually do something about it.

I sacrificed my algorithm to watch a Tkklives video real quick, not the entire thing, but a portion to see if anything has changed from when I first got into the fandom and wanted to see what a the drama was about once I knew Tkk vs Jikook was a thing.

Anyway, from the 5 minutes I just watched, it doesn’t seem like much has changed. She slows down clips and makes up her own ideas about what’s going on, and people believe it. So if that’s all she’s been doing and continues to do, there is nothing the company can do about that. Not to mention, people keep saying Big Hit said she can keep going, and aside from me never seeing proof of that being true, I would imagine her not living in SK makes it tough to sue her anyway.

She posts elaborate fantasy edits, creating a story out of footage millions of other people have made YouTube edits with. Granted she’s annoying and has stirred a plethora of drama within the fandom, but she’s not doing anything illegal from how it currently looks. So it’s. It even really that a delusional fan is creating and spreading her own conclusions, it must that Tae unfortunately has the most toxic fans out of the members, and majority of them ship Tkk.

His fans also happen to be the most vocal, even if he’s not the most popular, so they tend to cause the most chaos. In any case, I’m not trying to change anything nor argue with people who have sewn their ears shut. It’s just irritating to see a guy who seemingly wants to get to know BTS as people and artists be led astray, over a ship and fandom drama he has no idea about. They’re using his naïvety to manipulate his opinions of the members and the company (the latter which don’t even need help these days), but the second someone suggests a Jikook video for Frankie to watch so he can fully understand that Jimin and Jungkook do essentially live in a bubble when together, and outside parties often come across as third wheels without it being a big deal, that person will be spammed with harassment and be considered a necessary block. Which Frankie would like adhere to, because he is unaware that Tkkrs hate Jimin and his friendship with JK.

Which, from an outside perspective is always going to be difficult to explain, because the actual status of JM and JK’s relationship is irrelevant. Them dating or not does not mean anything to the overall fact of the situation. It’s simple that Tkkrs hate the very possibility of them meaning anything to each other, because they want Tae and JK to mean everything to one another at all times. It’s why Tkkrs struggle to accept even the smallest Jikook moments. JK can’t wish Jimin a happy birthday without Tkkrs claiming he was forced by the company to say something. Jungkoom can’t look at his cellphone even though JM and Tae can, without it meaning he’s bored out of his mind without Tae around to entertain him.

So how do you explain to someone who is 100% unaware of this chaos, that he’s being lied to? There is sensible way to tell Frankie Biggz that the people who harassed him only did so, because they don’t like they he misunderstood Tae’s natural “bitchy” personality, due to him simply not knowing Tae well enough to know that’s just how he is? How do you explain to him that AYS wasn’t written with the intent to make Tae seem like a third wheel, but that Jimin and Jungkook themselves are more than aware that they tend to push people into third wheel territory when with them, because they build a bubble around themselves when together?

You can’t explain that. It has to be observed, but when Tkkrs are able to get ahead of that learning curve, and plant seeds of doubt and convince people that Tae is a victim of a mean company and JM and JK are victims of a script… there’s nothing else that can be done.

I do hope he continues to watch more official content and comes to realize Tae is sort of meh about things, because that’s just who he is. He makes snarky comments and likes to chill out on his own, but he’s also very extroverted and livens up a party when he wants to. I also hope he is able to learn who Jimin and Jungkook are, and understand that it would be impossible to script their friendship for 12 years. But who knows. Hell either fall down the Tkk lies rabbit hole, or see the light. Either way, I am still annoyed Tkkrs got to him so fast.